Compressor



Oct. 25, 1932. w. J. ROULEAU 3 Q a Ma COMPRESSOR Fil ed Feb. 27, 1951Patented Oct. 25, 1932 UNITED STATES WILFRED. J. ROULEAU, OF QUINCY,MASSACHUSETTS COMPRESSOR Application filed February 27, 1931.

This invention relates to compressors for compressing air or gas andespecially to the extracting of the heat of compression durmg thecompressing operation and has for one of its objects to provide a. novelcompressor in which the cylinder member is constituted by the spacebetween two co-axial conical walls and the piston member has a hollowconical shape and is situated co-axially with the conical walls of thecylinder and operates in the direction of the length of said axis.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a compressor of this typewhich is double acting, in which the power is applied to the piston atthe apex of the conical shape thereof, and in which the conical walls ofthe cylinder are water cooled.

Other objects of the invention are to provide other improvements incompressors of this type as will be more fully hereinafter set forth.

In order to give an understanding of the invention I have illustrated inthe drawing a selected embodiment thereof which will now be describedafter which the novel features will be pointed out in the appendedclaims.

The drawing indicates a longitudinal sectional view through a compressorembodying my invention.

In my improved compressor the cylinder space in which the pistonoperates is indicatcd at 1 and it is constituted by the space betweenthe hollow conical wall 2 which forms the exterior wall of the cylinderspace and the co-axial conical wall 3 which forms the interior wall ofsaid cylinder space. The piston member is indicated at 4 and it has ahollow conical shape which is co-axial with the conical members 2 and 3.The movement of the piston is in the direction of the axis of saidconical members and during the movement of the piston member in onedirection (to the left the exterior face thereof approaches the exteriorwall 2 of the cylinder member and the interior face of the pistonrecedes from the interior wall 3 of the cylinder, while during themovement of the piston member in the opposite direction (to Serial No.518,646.

the right) the interior face of the piston. approach-cs the interiorwall 8 of the cylinder and the exterior face of the piston recedes fromthe exterior wall 2 of the cylinder.

The compressor is provided with an inlet port and a discharge portcommunicating with the space between the piston member and the exteriorwall 2 of the cylinder and also with another inlet port and dischargeport communicating with the space between said piston member and theinterior wall 3 of the cylinder thereby making the compressor a doubleacting one.

The exterior and interior walls 2 and 3 of the cylinder member may besupported in various ways. As herein shown the exterior wall 2 iscarried by a housing which forms with said wall a water jacket forcooling the cylinder wall 2. This housing comprises .the cylindricalsection 5 which may be mounted on any suitable support 6 and which ischambered as shown at 7 to form a water jacket. The housing alsoincludes a conical section 8 which surrounds the conical wall 2 of thecylinder member and is provided at its base with a flange 9 adapted tobe secured in any appropriate way to the cylindrical section 5. Thesmall end of the conical housing section 8 has a head 10 securedthereto.

The exterior conical wall 2 of the cylinder member is shown as having aflange 11 at its larger end which engages the end of the cylindricalsection 5 and is secured thereto in any appropriate way and is alsoshown as having afiange 12 at its smaller end which engages the head 10and may be secured thereto by any appropriate means.

The interior cylindrical wall 8 is secured to a head member 13 whichsets within the cylindrical housing section 5 and is provided with aflange 14 overlying the end of said section, said flange being securedto the section 5 by any appropriate means, not shown.

15 indicates a piston rod which is shown as connected to the small endof the conical 9 piston 4, said rod extending through an opening in thesmall end of the cylinder space 1 and through the head 10, the latterbeing provided with a stufiing box 16 of usual construction to provide atight joint.

The inlet and discharge ports leading to the cylinder space between thepiston 42 and the outer cylinder wall 2 are shown as formed in thehousing section 5. The inlet port is shown at 17 and it is controlled bya springpressed inlet valve 18 of usual construction. The discharge portis indicated at 19 and it is controlled by a spring-pressed dischargeexhaust valve 20 which may also have any suitable or usual construction.7' Itjwill be understood, ofcourse, that the discharge port 19communicates with a suit-.. able delivery pipe (not shown) by which thecompressed air or gas 'may be-conveyed-to any desired location. Theinlet valve l'? is the usual inwardly-opening valve normally held closedby the spring 21 and the discharge valve is the usual outwardly-openingvalve 23 will communicate with a suitable discharge 7 plpe (not shown)which may be screw threaded into the screw-threaded aperture 29.

The piston i is shown as provided at its :large end with a cylindricalskirt portion 30 which fits within the inner cylindricalwall 31- of thehousingsection 5. This skirt section 30 is shown as having piston rings32 for the purpose of making a tight joint and 1 the head 13 is soshaped as to provide between it and the housing section 5 an annularspace 33 inwhich the skirt 32 of the piston member may operate as thelatter is reciprocated. The

inlet and discharge ports 23 and 26 are placed so as to communicate withthis annular space as. v I

As the piston 4: is moved toward the left the air or gas in the cylinderspace outside of said piston will be compressed and forced through thedischarge port 19 while at the same time the suction created in thespace at the inside of said piston member will draw in a supply throughthe inlet port 23. Upon the movement of the piston to the right the airor gas in the space between the piston and the cylinder wall 3 will becompressed and forced out through the discharge port 26 while thesuction created in the cylinder space between the piston 4 and the outercylinder wall 2 will open the inlet valve 17 to allow grooves 34leadingto theports 23 and 26,

these grooves preventing the ports from being closed by the skirtportion 30 of the piston. I l

The space 35 between the outer cylinder a water jacket through which acooling medium, preferably water, may be circulated for keeping thecylinder wall 2 cool. For this purpose the housing section 8 isprovidedwith an'inlet port 36 and a discharge leads through the head 13and terminates adjacent the small end 40 of the wall 3 and have alsoprovided a discharge pipe 41 leading through the head 13. The coolingmedium which is admitted through the pipe 39 is delivered to the chamber38 at the small end thereof and will thus be circulated through saidchamber before it is discharged through the discharge pipe ll. r

I claim:

1. In a compressor, the combination with a cylinder memberhaving'co-aXial conical eX- terior and interior walls spaced from eachother, of a hollow conical piston member operating between said wallsand movable in thedirection of the axis thereof and 'means to operatethe piston member.

'2. A compressor as described in claim 1,

provided with an inlet and an exhaust port a leading to the space oneach side of the piston, whereby the compressor is double acting. 3. Ina compressor such as described in wall 2 and the housing section 8constitutes claim 1, the provision of a piston rod connected to thesmall end of the piston and by which the latter is reciprocated.

4. In a compressor such as described in *claim 1, the provision of acylindrical skirt sectionextendingfrom the large end of the piston andmeans providing an annular space at the corresponding end of thecylinder in which said skirt portion operates as the piston isreciprocated.

5. In'a compressor, the combination with a cylinder member havingcoaxial conical exterior and interior walls spaced from each other, of ahollow conical piston member operating between said walls and movable inthe direction of the axis thereof, means to operate the piston member,said piston member having a cylindrical skirt section extending fromits'larger end, and means providing an annular space at thecorresponding end of the cylinder in which said skirt 7 portion operatesas the piston is reciprocated,

there being both an inlet port and a discharge port communicating withsaid annular space.

6. A compressor such as described in claim 1 provided with means forwater cooling both the conical cylinder wall on the exterior of thepiston member and the conical cylinder wall on the interior of saidpiston member.

7. In a compressor, the combination with a cylinder element comprising ahollow conical member and a second conical member partially nestedwithin the hollow conical member but spaced therefrom, the space betweensaid members constituting the cylinder space, a hollow conical pistonmember operating in said space, and means to operate the piston member.

8. In a compressor, the combination with acylinder element comprising ahollow conical member and a second conical member situated coaxially ofthe hollow conical member but having its exterior spaced from theinterior of the hollow member, the hollow conical piston operating inthe space between said members, and means for actuating the piston.

9. In a compressor, the combination with a cylinder element comprising ahollow conical member and a second conical member partially nestedwithin the hollow conical member but spaced therefrom, the space betweensaid members constituting the cylinder space, a hollow conical pistonmember operating in said space, means to operate the piston member, andmeans for water cooling both the cylinder wall inside of the piston andon the outside of the piston.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

IVILFRED J. ROULEAU.

